INDIANAPOLIS—For the 20th time, Sprint Cup cars will take the green flag at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

For the first time, Ryan Newman—a driver who has won 50 poles in his career—will take the green flag at IMS from the pole.

The 20th running of the Brickyard 400 will feature the first race of the Gen-6 cars at the famed 2.5-mile oval. How they race will be a good test for stock cars at a speedway not traditionally friendly for them.

1. Ryan Newman, No. 39 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet—A win would be huge for Newman as he looks for a 2014 ride. He took the first step Saturday, breaking the track record in capturing the pole.

2. Jimmie Johnson, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet—So if Johnson battles Gordon at the end to see who would win a record fifth Brickyard 400, who would the Hendrick haters root for?

3. Carl Edwards, No. 99 Roush Fenway Racing Ford—Not a good qualifier at Indy (average start 22nd) but is a much better racer (average finish 13.25). Since he’s starting third, that bodes awfully well for him.

4. Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota—Has to hope his post-injury funk has finally passed through the veins of him and his team.

5. Tony Stewart, No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet—Stewart probably hated having to go back to his day job after loving life racing sprint cars and helping run the Eldora truck race the last couple of weeks. Starting fifth makes it a little better.

6. Kurt Busch, No. 78 Furniture Row Racing Chevrolet—Another strong start to a weekend for this team that again seeks to finish the deal.

7. Kasey Kahne, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet—Has finished outside the top-10 in each of the last three races. And here’s the kicker: With two 11th place finishes, has moved up one spot to 10th in the standings.

8. Juan Pablo Montoya, No. 42 Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet—Should have won the Brickyard in 2009, but sped on pit road. Should have won the Brickyard in 2010, but took four tires rather than two. He could finally get redemption Sunday.

9. Jeff Gordon, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet—Gordon is a four-time winner at Indianapolis. But with the last win coming in 2004, it appears he has lost some magic in his adopted home state.

11. Joey Logano, No. 22 Penske Racing Ford—Won the Nationwide race last week at Chicagoland. Just writing that in case you took last weekend off because it has no bearing on what he does at IMS.

12. Brad Keselowski, No. 2 Penske Racing Ford—Stars in a SportsCenter commercial that debuted this week. Hopes to star in the actual show Sunday by winning the Brickyard.

13. Matt Kenseth, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota—If it comes down to fuel mileage, with four wins already this season, Kenseth in prime position to take another chance.

14. AJ Allmendinger, No. 51 Phoenix Racing Chevrolet—The only driver in the field to race this year in the Indianapolis 500 and Brickyard 400. Probably would be happy with a similar finish of seventh.

15. Dale Earnhardt Jr., No. 88 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet—Not nearly as worried about lack of sponsorship for later this year as his fans are nor the industry as a whole that sees him, rightly or wrongly, as a barometer for the sport.

16. Jeff Burton, No. 31 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet—His third-place finish two weeks ago at New Hampshire was his best non-restrictor-plate since September 2010.

17. Clint Bowyer, No. 15 Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota—The MWR teams of Martin Truex Jr. and Brian Vickers/Mark Martin have won this year. It’s time for Clint to find his way to the checkered flag, too.

18. Jamie McMurray, No. 1 Earnhardt Ganassi Racing Chevrolet—Last three races have been a second, seventh and 12th. In the previous nine races, had no finish better than 13th.

19. Kyle Busch, No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota—Not necessarily a great track for Busch, but nearly won last year as he finished second.

20. Austin Dillon, No. 33 Circle Sport Racing Chevrolet—Wouldn’t be surprising if he runs just as well or better in this car than he does his Nationwide car this weekend.

21. Aric Almirola, No. 43 Richard Petty Motorsports Ford—Didn’t want to see a break in the schedule after a season-best fifth at New Hampshire.